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This is one of the few things I can make without a recipe. You see it mainly at Greek and Indian restaurants, but I think it's international. The Greeks call it Tzatziki, the Indians call it Raita, and the Bulgarians call it Snezhanka. This is my best stab at it.

- 2 or 3 cucumbers. (If you use the big seedless cukes, 2 is okay. Use 2.5 to 3 regular cukes, seeded. This works out to about 2 cups of grated cucumber.)

- 1/8 tsp salt. (That's how much I use, you can just do it to taste.)

- A biggish clove of garlic, minced.

- 1/4 tsp lemon juice.

- 1/4 tsp olive oil.

- Optional: Chopped walnuts and dill.

1. First thing to do is to strain the yogurt. If you get a nice thick yogurt, you can do it with a regular wire colander. Anything soupy like Activia, you have to use cheesecloth. This is going to have to sit in the fridge overnight, or around 8 hours.

2. If you get seedless cukes, just peel them and grate them. With regular cukes, I suggest cutting them in half, peeling them, using a skinny kitchen knife to drill the seeds out, then grating them. I strain these overnight as well, but putting it in a colander and gently pushing down with a paper towel works too.

3. After the yogurt and cukes are strained, you mix them together, then throw in the salt, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil. I suggest leaving this in the fridge for around another hour to let the seasonings seep out a bit.

4. Once it's ready, you can throw in the walnuts and dill if you want. I don't let either one sit because it can mess up the taste of the nuts, and it's pretty easy to go overboard with the dill. This goes well as a dip for bread or vegetables. I also put it on sandwiches when I really want mayonnaise.

I shall now take a page out of the Patriot45 handbook, and post food pictures.

This is my yogurt-straining apparatus. I have a lid to cover it with before refrigerating. Again, you need a thick yogurt, or it will run through the strainer like water.

I got regular cukes with seeds, so this is how they look after I peel them, cut them, and seed them.

The cukes, after grating, on their way to their sleepover in the fridge.

Few dollops of the finished product with a bit of dill. It's not very appetizing-looking by itself, but I think its pretty tasty and not terrible for you.

I have had this at indian restaruants....it usually does a good job of cooling down the spice.

Can this be used in Gyros?

Gun Control: The theory that a woman found dead in an alley, raped and strangled with her panty hose, is somehow morally superior to a woman explaining to police how her attacker got that fatal bullet wound - Unknown

Killer pics! I enjoy tzatziki sauce on the fresh gyros they make in Tarpon Springs down here.

Originally Posted by Molon Labe

I have had this at indian restaruants....it usually does a good job of cooling down the spice.

Can this be used in Gyros?

Originally Posted by biccat

Looks great!

Now do you have a recipe for lamb for Gyros?

I've only had one gyro in my life (with tzatziki), and I remember it being tasty, if not very filling. I've never tried to make them, because surprisingly enough, I don't really like Greek food. :eek: Too much feta, grape leaves and olives (I hate all three), and sometimes I feel like they overseason their meats. Really, this is the only thing on the menu at Greek restaurants that I really enjoy, so I just experimented until this recipe happened. Believe me, there were a few trials that had to be 'discarded'.

My suggestion of entree for this is something Indian, and I think I've got a nice hot Tikka or Curry recipe around here somewhere, so when I get to it, I'll post that too. Thanks for all the comments. :D

I've only had one gyro in my life (with tzatziki), and I remember it being tasty, if not very filling. I've never tried to make them, because surprisingly enough, I don't really like Greek food. :eek: Too much feta, grape leaves and olives (I hate all three), and sometimes I feel like they overseason their meats. Really, this is the only thing on the menu at Greek restaurants that I really enjoy, so I just experimented until this recipe happened. Believe me, there were a few trials that had to be 'discarded'.

My suggestion of entree for this is something Indian, and I think I've got a nice hot Tikka or Curry recipe around here somewhere, so when I get to it, I'll post that too. Thanks for all the comments. :D

Grape leaves are pretty nasty, but Gyros are one of my favorite foods. Teh cucumber mixture seemed similar to the ones I've had.

My sister in law is indian. Her family catered her wedding. I swallowed some strange indian Nuclear fire pepper. (It looked harmless enough). All these Indain ladies were patting me on the back and telling me to breathe slowly. That tzatziki was my only help :p .

Gun Control: The theory that a woman found dead in an alley, raped and strangled with her panty hose, is somehow morally superior to a woman explaining to police how her attacker got that fatal bullet wound - Unknown